The third installment of this season's 'El Clasico' match-up between Real Madrid and Barcelona could have been renamed 'El Fiasco'. Depending on your outlook, it may have been surprising to see Jose Mourinho's Madrid squad setup with such bullying tactics. Both coaches had strong words for one another in the press conference so I was […]

For the past several seasons, Real Madrid treated the Copa del Rey as a nuisance and a burden rather than a competition worth winning.  José Mourinho has changed that mentality.  One Taça de Portgual with FC Porto, two Carling Cups and an FA Cup with Chelsea, and a Coppa Italia with Inter Milan signals Mourinho's […]

Earlier this offseason, I posted a poll and question about what EPL teams you would like to see do a tour of the United States.  Since then we have seen Barcelona confirm a three-stop tour of the U.S., where they will be playing both Manchester United (DC) and AC Milan (Miami).  But with as large […]

Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo has been playing some of his best football since joining Real Madrid last season. Ronaldo has already scored 14 goals in just 12 matches in La Liga. Overall, the former Manchester United star has found the back of the net 18 times in just 19 games in all competitions. Ronaldo had […]

As with most local derbies (national derbies such as El Clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Le Classique between Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain, De Klassieker between Ajax and Feyenoord, etc. excluded), the derby means a little more to one club than the other.  While Arsenal always wants to defeat their north London neighbor Tottenham Hotspur, […]

With the reinstitution of the Galáctico policy following Florentino Pérez's return as President of Real Madrid last summer, Pérez wasted no time in the second construction of his universe-beating side.  Lost in the shuffle of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaká, and Xabi Alonso joining the club, Karim Benzema quietly transferred from Olympique Lyonnais to Real Madrid, if […]

Fifa released its list of the 23 nominees for the Ballon D'Or of 2010. Along with the 23 players, there are also 10 managers/coaches competing for the World Coaches of the Year award. The winners of both will be announced by FIFA on December 6th. Something which will stand out right away when you look […]

Yesterday was a bad day for Serie A in the Champions League.  Roma lost 3-1 at home to FC Basel to fall into last place in Group E, but level on points with Basel and Cluj.  But the big story of the night was AC Milan's first trip back to the Bernabeu since their shock […]

Through the first six rounds in La Liga, Valencia CF led the way at the top of the ladder with sixteen points, one point ahead of Villarreal, two points ahead of Real Madrid, and three points ahead of FC Barcelona.  Along with Real Madrid, Valencia remained only one of two teams still undefeated in the […]

Early in the second half, before Angel di María opened the scoring with a sublime curler to the right far post to give Real Madrid the 0-1 lead, "El Especial," José Mourinho, lambasted referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz for showing a yellow card on Sergio Ramos for an apparent trip on young Real Sociedad starlet Antoine […]

After a goal strewn Champions League opener (unless you were at Old Trafford) highlighted the quality on show in the world’s Elite club competition. The games in Group A were a particular highlight. Tonight see’s the rest of the competition kicking off and provides me with another opportunity to embarrass myself publicly with my predictions, […]

When Shaun Wright Phillips appeared as second half substitute against Switzerland, he was probably hoping that an impressive display could kick-start his club season. But things didn’t go according to plan for the Manchester City winger and a below par display was topped off with a woeful cross that eluded Darren Bent and infuriated boss […]

Today's UEFA Champions League draw was one that should prove that Serie A is still one of the premier leagues in the world, and that Inter is arguably the world's best club.  The Nerazzurri swept the UEFA individual awards: Goalkeeper of the Year (Julio Cesar), Defender of the Year (Maicon), Midfielder of the Year (Wesley […]

With less than a week to go before the World Cup ends, the cast of characters on Special1 TV are out of the World Cup. Fabio Capello and Wayne Rooney went home with their heads down. Sven had an early exit courtesy of Ivory Coast. But they're all back on Special 1 TV in what […]

It's that time in the World Cup 2010 tournament where a little bit of comedic relief would do a lot of people the world of good, myself included. So who better than The Special One to provide the laughs? Following their victory against Slovenia the English team prepared for their next game against Germany. Simon […]